Dead to the World
by AbsintheFair
Summary: The events after Severus Snape’s final night as a faithful Death Eater, until the night he is forced to prove his loyalty again. HBP spoilers.


**Dead to the World**

AbsintheFair

Chapter One

_Survival and Submission_

"Where have I been all this time?  
Lost, enslaved, fatal decline  
I've been waiting for this to unfold  
But the pieces are only as good as the whole  
Sever myself from my own lie  
And cut up the only thing that was right  
What if I never saw you again?_." _

_– Slipknot/Danger- Keep Away_

The shuddering door almost lost its hinges when he had stormed into the room. The woman lying in the bed forced herself to raise her head and look at the time before showing any sort of interest in her lover. "Get out of bed," he hissed. Raising her thin black brows she somewhat fell out of bed, trying her best to appear graceful.

He was quite prone to his random outbursts, his anger was acceptable to her now, but waking her up from a perfectly lovely sleep just to yell at her to get out of a bed he usually was telling her to get in… there _had_ to be somethingwrong. "What's the matter now?" she asked sleepily, trying to stand up by resting her hand on the rickety table.

"I… I've done something terrible," he said shakily. Something was most _definitely _wrong. He wasn't looking at her when he had said it, his palms were sweaty, and his brow was creased. This was out of character for him – Severus Snape never admitted to his wrong doings, and if he did, he would say it with an ease that startled her, as well at the other Death Eaters.

Before she could speak however, he was throwing open their suitcases in a whirl of clothing and trinkets. "_What in Gods name are you doing?_" she hissed, grabbing at his arm and tugging with a pincer-like grip. He winced at her touch and spun around, his teeth were bared and his usual gaze of acid steel was animal-like and nervous, as if he were being hunted. Her eyes widened, she was almost instantly pushed to the floor by his jittery hands. "What the _fuck_ do you think you're doing!" she shrieked this time. He narrowed his eyes, not at her, but at the blank pasty wall.

"No," he muttered, as if he had come to a decision in his mind. "No, we won't take the suitcases; they can't trace them back to us…"

She watched him with a mingled morbid fascination and fear. Had he finally gone mad? She had never really thought he was quite stable when the time called for it, but considering she was now on the floor and at his mercy as he begun to grind his teeth and unlock drawers in the deranged state he was in, she felt it necessary for her safety to stay silent and see what he'd do next.

"Yes, this works…" Hurriedly and with a liquid ease he was placing numerous objects and their suspicious contents into one small suitcase, ranging from vials to small black books, he had finally finished and locked it, slipping the key into his pocket. The woman stared at him, waiting for his next move, her eyes growing weary she had felt the coaxing warmth of sleep creeping up on her again.

He slashed at the suitcase with his wand and without delay it disappeared out of sight. Whirling around in a ripple of robes he said with a desperation she hadn't heard in a long time: "Celeste, you're coming with me." She stared at him with bewilderment, and the sleepiness drugging her beforehand was gone in a flash. His hands with their overpowering grip had taken hold of her arms, and he dragged her out the door and into the long winding corridor. What was the man doing? Where were they going?

"I am _not _coming with you!" Celeste managed to spit at him. "Unhand me you git!" she struggled against his grasp, but as always he was stronger than her. She had decided she hadn't want to go anywhere with him when he was like this. His grip stiffened further, and she felt the bruises forming under her flesh. "Think of what the Dark Lord will say…" she pleaded with him, she was so afraid; he could see it in her pale eyes.

"Listen to me Celeste," he shook her, almost violently. "You must come with me, this _must_ end tonight." She knew he had meant business and by his tone, he was willing to hurt her to bring her with him.

"Severus he'll kill you," she hissed, struggling again against his grip.

"I think I know where we can go…" His gaze swept over the corridor, and before she could protest, she was being pulled along by his hand.

"Severus! NO!" she wrenched him back.

"Quiet Celeste!" he hissed again. "The others will hear you!"

"I WANT them to hear me! Get off me!" Losing whatever patience he had had left for her he thrust her belly-first into one of the surrounding walls. She had whimpered and struggled again, but the sharp pain she had felt forced all her physical strength to concentrate on the bruising alone. "Oh Severus, stop it, make sense of yourself…"

He held her with even more force, and as if from no where he brandished thin cords and tied her wrists together. She tried to scream but his hand prevented her from it, she tried to bite him, but before she could manage it, he brought her to her knees and held a dagger at her neck; her eyes almost popped out – "So help me Merlin, I will not hurt you unless you force me to, now keep your mouth shut, or as much as I would hate to slit that pretty neck of yours" – one of his fingers traced her jugular, "I will not hesitate if it will cost both of us our freedom."

"Severus," she choked.

"No." Dropping the dagger he kneed her onto the floor and with a roughness he reserved only for the bed, he tore a thin section of her nightgown and with a smooth ease, he covered her mouth with the material and fastened it at the back of her head. With a fingertip he tilted her chin up, so she could see his eyes bore into hers. "Now let us move on, shall we?" He hoisted her up and guiding her with an arm, he went along the winding corridors and downstairs through to the way out.

As they slipped outside, the dim lighting from a second floor room could be seen. Some of the Death Eaters were still about the manor and enjoying the delight of alcoholic beverages; their brutish laughter sending shivers down Severus' spine, he couldn't be gladder to leave right at this moment. Celeste still struggled against him, her eyes were still wide with anger and terror, and she couldn't quite come to terms with what was happening. Just a few hours ago he was in his usual unemotional state while reading a book and scrawling notes across it. His behaviour had always captivated her, never quite understanding him, she always knew more about him than anyone else. Now here he was, dragging her towards what appeared to be the outline of his horse. Her vision was poor at dusk, but she figured he didn't want to Apparate as crossing the enchantments of the area with magic would surely get the attention of the Death Eaters who remained inside.

"Now, Celeste," he murmured to her between steering her along and trying to reach for the horse's reigns, "I'm going to hoist you up, and unless you want to break both our backs, I suggest you listen carefully…" So she had listened, and tried to block the deafening sound of betrayal from her mind. "You will lean against Maddox's neck and spread your legs; I'd rather you not sit side-ways, as I don't believe this will be a comfortable ride." She obeyed and he lifted her into his arms. She felt the warmth of his body, and had the sudden urge to curl up into a ball around him; then again, this was hardly the time or place. Sleep would come later, she knew it, but at this rate, it would take hours.

The horse's usual temper was foul, but it had respected its master, and quite frankly loved the touch of Celeste, so it let her almost strain its neck with her weight without a sound. She spread her legs with much difficulty, but she had succeeded. The uncomfortable feeling between her legs sitting on the tough saddle made her squirm slightly, but before she could give Severus a nasty look, he hoisted himself swiftly to sit right behind her. She could feel him from behind more than ever, she hadn't felt so aware in a long time how fragile she was in comparison with a man, how much weaker she truly was when threatened, and pushed and hurt with such disregard, especially at the hands of someone she cared about. She clearly detested what was happening to her, but still she didn't really have a clue what Severus had intended for them, and where exactly they were going (not that he had given her much of a choice).

Within seconds Maddox was stamping its feet and it leapt with its front hooves into the air, straining against Severus' reigns, and they were off. The pressure on her thighs when the horse galloped at break-neck speed was almost unbearable. Severus was quite used to it, and he had enjoyed riding at such a dangerous speed, but now the purpose of getting out of the place seemed more of an interest to him than how fast he could go in how many minutes.

They raced with the horse past the trees like an arrow, they had no direction, but one which would for Severus lead to a better road. Celeste was weary, she moaned through the material bandaged across her mouth every time Maddox galloped sharply in another direction, she could feel more bruises forming on her flesh by the second – all the while Severus remained silent, he had nothing to say to her, all that could be said was said back at the manor. His breath was almost in gasps, the cool air of the night, in what seemed like hours was starting to affect him. His lungs were screaming for more air, but his body temperature was rising steadily with the amount of sweat he was shedding against the cool air. Steering Maddox was a hard task for anyone, and through the dense forest it was even harder. The horse was large and powerful, its black coat was rather muddy, and he usually wasn't a well-kept horse, but well-fed, Severus always made sure.

Within about an hour they had heard more hooves from behind them, at a lightening quick speed a flash of red hit a tree close by and it instantly was engulfed in flames. They could hear the faint shouts of people from behind them. "Blast…" Snape uttered and Celeste's eyes darted from side to side. "They've caught on…"

"_SNAPE! What the fuck are you doing!_" shouted the distinctly recognizable voice of Avery. More shouts followed from behind. Severus however did not stop once to look behind him, he continued to dodge their questions and curses.

Faintly from behind them, they could both hear another Death Eater ask why Celeste was tied and bound, and quickly those who were behind automatically registered what was going on. "Let her go!" one shouted.

"You bloody maniac, wait until the Dark Lord hears about this!" another shouted.

Maddox was becoming tired, and Celeste's eyes continued flickering open and closed. Severus took sharp turns more and more, until the hooves from behind begun to sound slightly fainter. Celeste's pain soon ebbed away, all she could see were the blurry statues of trees and the full moon high in the sky. Wolves were calling to one another, and each time Maddox shook and turned another corner without Severus' instructions. He struggled with the horse while a curse suddenly hit another tree – the Death Eaters were gaining behind them again. Severus tried to hold the reigns of the horse while slipping a hand into his pocket, succeeding, he pointed the wand at a tree that they had just past, and for a split second he could see three hooded men behind him. With a flash and a silent curse, the tree they had past pulled from its roots and came crashing down with such a force it shook the ground beneath them jolting Maddox and forcing the Death Eaters from behind to swerve to a stop or risk their lives, and no Death Eater was that brave.

Maddox continued riding, however as they slowly reached the downward slope of a hill, the horse skidded and almost threw Celeste off, causing Severus to let one hand go of the reign to clasp a hold of her. In the process of doing this, Severus lost control of Maddox and both master and horse fell sideways down the hill. The earth below was harsh, the horse grunted in pain, and Celeste tried to cry out or protect herself, but the bonds were too tight. Severus let go of Maddox and made sure to take both his and Celeste's weight down the hill with him. She could feel the rupturing of a vital organ within her, she felt an intense pain, no matter how much Severus was trying to take her fall for her, she suffered injury. He drew out a short breath, "Celeste." She could hear him and tried to move, to respond in some way. She could feel that they had come to a stop. Maddox lay at the foot of the hill perhaps a couple of meters away. The horses didn't appear to be moving.

There they were, amongst the dense bushes, a cluster of black robes, and dirty flesh. His fingers were reaching for her face, it was then she had realized the material that had stopped her from speaking was torn. She could finally speak. "Severus," she managed to painfully hiss. She felt something down her throat; she wasn't sure what it was. She couldn't bear to look at her body or his for that matter.

"Celeste, what are you feeling right now?" His hands were pulling undone her bonds while he lay side-on to her. She started weeping, right now she hated him for what he had done, to betray their lord and to put her through this hell. He didn't try to comfort her, he simply pulled away her bonds and he lay panting, trying to catch his breath.

Their surrounds were unfamiliar, and he was sure that he had broken his compass. He knew he was prepared, but not prepared to crash and burn like this. If it wasn't for those blasted Death Eaters they would be safe on their way to Hogwarts by now. Dumbledore would be welcoming them, they could eat and sleep, but this was just impossible. He began to think of ways to help them to survive. He took a look at Celeste, and he saw that angelic expression on her face, washed with moonlight. She was sleeping, in all that had just happened, and the chaos, she was sleeping.

---------------------------------

Morning came swiftly.

Celeste's eyes fluttered open, and she moaned in pain. She slept so deep, she dreamt nothing, she felt nothing… it was as if she had fallen into a coma and then woken up at the crack of dawn. Her wrists had hurt from where the bonds had been, and last night came flashing back into her memory. She lay motionless and thinking, she didn't feel the warmth of anyone beside her, she felt suddenly quite naked, but someone's intense gaze was resting on her crumpled up form. She managed to turn to her side and try and lean on her elbow to look up. She met Severus' gaze. He watched her while he sat by what appeared to be a small fire he had gotten going. "Up already?" he asked with half mock.

"You're mocking me even when I've been brutalized?" she asked acidly.

"Come, sit."

She raised both her brows at his request, she could hardly move. Managing to get onto her knees, she pressed her painful sore-covered hands and crawled to the fire, making sure not to sit right beside to him. She couldn't bring herself to talk to him. He just watched her from across the dancing flames, and his smirk was quite simply astoundingly rude. "You like to see me like this, don't you?" she asked finally finding her tongue.

"You look quite pretty for someone who's just endured the pains of camping out in a bush."

"You must be joking… how can you possibly be smug with me right now, you're also in this mess you've created."

He chuckled, "This was _my_ mess, now let me enjoy it while I can."

"Well, what do you suppose you're going to do about it?"

"I'm going to sit here, and wait until sunset, then we can see which way the sun will be setting, and exactly which direction it is we will need." His gaze swept over their surrounds.

"Very clever, but because of you, the Dark Lord now thinks I am a traitor."

"No, you were an unwilling traitor, but much the same, you are in the company of a traitor."

"I could run away from you…" she toyed. Unwisely she realized her mistake when he rose from where he was seated. She moved back and tried to get away from him, but quite clearly he was looming above her and with one fluid move, he had her facing down on her belly. He straddled her thighs and wrenched her hands behind her again. His hands grasped her wrists so painfully she let out a cry of pain.

"You're playing dangerous games, Celeste."

"I'm bleeding Severus, please, let go of me," she pleaded.

He made no response and by shredding one more section of her nightgown, he wrapped it a number of times around where his hands had been. His groin pressed against her thighs, a move which had made him shift uncomfortably. Arousal was the last thing he had needed, and he had decided raping a bound woman in pain just to relieve his own sexual needs was just not something he'd do… well… to Celeste at least.

"Severus," she hissed again. "I'm bleeding."

He glanced down at her slender frame, and ran a hand down and across her back. He hadn't felt the warmth of her blood. He figured it was internal, and quite swiftly he hoisted himself from her. "Where is the pain?" he asked.

"Towards my lower abdomen, it's terrible; I think I've ruptured a vital organ." Worriedly she rolled herself over and onto her back, her bound wrists painfully protruding into her spine. "Ugh," she moaned.

He glanced down at her, a detection of masked despair in his eyes. "My wand is broken," he confided.

"Can you please check me Severus, as my hands are unavailable to me," she grumped.

Bending down to his knees, he placed a hand on her lower abdomen, and pressed with his fingertips at certain spots. "Does this hurt?" he pressed down hard. She shook her head. "How about this?" she shook her head again. He arched a brow, and pressed a particular spot a little to the side of her womb. Almost immediately she shuddered against his touch. "Merlin no…" he rolled his eyes and rose to his feet, looking up to the canopies.

"What is it?" she pleaded.

He glanced back down at her with unfathomable eyes. "Celeste, the blood you're feeling, it doesn't happen to be somewhere between your legs, or have you never before experienced a menstrual cycle?"

Her green eyes widened. This was utterly humiliating. She felt so naïve and unintelligent. Well done, she thought, he's done it again. "It can't be?"

"There's only one way to find out, and you're going to be doing that right behind that tree over there." He gestured to his left. "I don't want to have to subject myself to this." He turned on his heel and made his way to some unthought-of destination five meters away. He muttered something inaudible under his breath, and Celeste knelt up with what little energy she had left.

She looked at him with amusement. "Severus, you do realize I can't check myself if I have these bonds."

Cringing at the thought of what was to come, he either faced the choice of releasing her and risking her running off, or having to pull up her nightgown to let her survey herself for inspection. Wheeling himself around he strode over to where she knelt, she smiled viperously. He came and sat behind her and undid her bonds. His trust in her surprised him too, but he believed that if she was bleeding, she wouldn't get very far with the aches and pains.

She rubbed her wrists and hoisted herself up; smiling to herself she made her way to the tree a meter or so away and lifted her nightgown. Severus stood uncomfortably from the other side of the tree. She gasped. "Well?" he asked lazily. She poked her long face from behind the tree.

"My thigh is bleeding badly, and no, it isn't that time of the month for your information." He looked relieved. "But this means I am certainly internally bleeding."

He nodded. "I wouldn't be surprised with the fall you had taken."

She swallowed and threw her skirts down. "Severus, are you going to tie me again?"

"Yes."

"Fuck you, _why!_"

"I don't really trust you Celeste…" He came around the tree and pushed her up against it before she could resist. Her cheek rubbed against the bark. She was seething.

"I cannot believe your nerve; after all you've put me through."

"It's for your own good," he snarled against her cheek. Reaching down, one hand still grasping her wrists, he slid his fingers down her smooth leg, sending shivers down her spine, making her shift – she hated the man and how every move he had made was so deliberate and cruel. Tearing another section of her nightgown he again wrapped another bond around her inflamed wrists. The pain was forcing anything of remote consolation out of her mind.

"You will be sorry for this," she hissed.

"Chances are, I will, but until then…" He gripped her hip. "You're very much going to have to rely on me, and you see, if I go down, so do you." She growled and elbowed him repeatedly. His lip curled triumphantly. "Not very wise of you Celeste," he said smoothly, and he forced her down onto her knees. A tear escaped her.

This was utter torture she thought to herself; perhaps he had gone mad and decided to play with her in the forest. The only thing she really worried about was the Dark Lord's reaction to all of what had just happened. Surely he would not understand Severus' behaviour and punish him brutally. The Cruciatus curse, or even physical torture, the Dark Lord would not accept one Death Eater using such force and control over another without his permission. Humiliation rippled through her. It was unforgiving, and right now, all she had wanted to do was escape Severus' hold over her.

A shot of pain paved its way through her lower abdomen again. She groaned, waiting to see how he would respond to her. He did nothing and swept off into the clearing where the fire was. "I don't see anything worth eating here." The delicate stress on the word 'worth' had made Celeste cock her brow.

"Don't you see in bunny rabbits hopping about?" she snorted to herself.

He had heard her. "No need to be coy with me, Celeste." His tone was becoming more dangerous and quiet with each response. She had suddenly halted further questions; he was unpredictable when like this. No need for her to push him further. He was not far off from slitting her throat at the manor.

Her hair had hung about her face like a long brown curtain, it was dirty, leaves and twigs perched themselves in the knots. She was growing bitter right now, she never felt so un-pretty in all her life. She didn't need a mirror; she didn't want to see how unattractive she was, without any make up, tear-stained dirt-patched face. She couldn't even bear to look down at herself. The vanity of her thoughts had startled her – she was in the middle of the forest, with lover-turned-mad miles away from anyone who gave a damn. Isn't this pleasant, she thought to herself. Comprehending the situation was rather amusing. She laughed to herself for a moment. Obviously her randomness had caught a hold of Severus and he came in a flurry of robes around the tree, his eyes flashed at her dangerously. What was the woman doing? He thought. Her hands were still tied behind her back, why in Merlin's name was she laughing?

"I hope you haven't finally retreated to that little safe place in your mind Celeste," he sneered. "That would be tragically sad, but it appears you have." Straightening himself he circled her like an over-large bat.

"Why are you doing this?" she couldn't help asking.

He stopped mid-stride, and looked down his hooked nose into her weary eyes. She suddenly felt that someone was sorting through her thoughts; it hadn't fully registered with her yet that he was a skilled Occlumens. "You know why," he finally said.

She lowered her head; he was driving her around the bend. He'd seen what she was thinking most probably, her wanting to escape him. It was only when his gaze locked with hers that he managed to extract bits and pieces from her. If she didn't look him in the eye, he wouldn't be able to see what she was going on in her mind. She swallowed the air deeply and let herself rest for a moment as she heard his footsteps drift in another direction.

---------------------------------

It was steadily approaching dusk.

Celeste sat with her bonds and gazed at the fire with a glassy expression. She spent the entire day avoiding eye contact with him, which was rather difficult. She sensed he was catching on as he strode back and forth around her, pausing momentarily to stop and regard her. He was scaring her now; the desperation to escape him was overwhelming. She always thought she savoured his company, but at the moment he was unbearable with his domineering countenance. Usually he held a quiet respect for her, now everything suddenly changed. "Look at me, Celeste," he spoke softly. This sudden change in his tone made her glance up a him, she had remembered she had to fool him into believing she wanted to be here… she returned his gaze. She tried to smile a little, an action which made him feel quickly uncomfortable. He was suspicious again, but he couldn't help wonder if that smile of her was genuine.

"Severus," she croaked. "How long do we have to be here?"

"We will be leaving shortly; Hogwarts is just north of here." He jerked his head in the opposite direction. "We must wait until the night to move, the Dark Lord's spies won't be able to detect us easily."

She arched her brows. "How exactly do you think _we_ will see in the dark?"

He narrowed his eyes. "Foolish woman, don't you realize the moon is still full, and it glows across the forest, regardless how thick the canopies."

She hadn't thought of that. Rolling her eyes she lowered her head again. She side-glanced him through her curtain of hair. He made his way to the opposite end of the fire. He watched her, as she watched him. "Soon we will be better of, Celeste."

She sighed. "Right now that's so far from the truth; I forgot what eating was like. Water sounds like a liquid dream…" Wordlessly Severus rose from where he was seated and disappeared out of sight for a few moments, she heard a rustling sound and then he had returned, he was carrying something in his hands. It looked as though it was dirt. He glanced at her for a moment and then dumped the dirt onto the fire, it almost fizzled out, but flames still licked through.

"Help me," he urged. She rose from where she was sitting and started to kick dirt onto the fire.

"We need the fire to keep us warm," she hissed, kicking ungratefully another lot of dirt onto the flames

"The smoke will attract attention to us, and agents of the Dark Lord might follow the smoke signals and find us." That had sound like a wonderful idea to her; the Dark Lord would rescue her from this nightmare. She said nothing however, hoping not to further upset him and let him become further weary of her.

"How will we keep warm?" she asked. His eyes shot a calculated look at her, and a horrible smirk suffused.

"I have an excellent idea, but I doubt you're interested," he mused.

Before she could bring herself to roll her eyes at him, a thought toyed with her. She crawled on her knees towards him, circling the spot where the fire had been. His expression was unreadable, but she could see the intensity in his eyes as the moonlight brushed his fathomless black pupils, which had started to dilate. "Severus," she breathed with a bewitching expression on her pale face. He looked down at her as she slowly eased herself onto his lap. There was something straining the fibers of his pants as he reacted uncomfortably to her sudden body contact. His expression was uneasy, but most certainly aroused. Straddling him her hands tightly bound behind her back, she tried to lean forward to kiss his lips, but losing her balance she missed and fell onto his chest. She snorted drunkly with laughter. He couldn't help curling his lips at her clumsiness.

"Perhaps you should just sleep; you're making an idiot of yourself."

Her head peeped up from under his chest. "It was your idea you know-it-all."

He cocked his brow ironically. "Had I asked you to crawl over here, and fall limply onto my chest in a _pathetic_ attempt to kiss me?"

"No," she looked hurt. "But the innuendo you had used was more than obvious."

He sneered, "To act like an enamored _drunk_?"

That was the final straw. Celeste pulled her weight up and pressed herself against him, forcing him backwards onto the forest floor. She continued to straddle his hips, and she smiled at him from where she sat; his expression was livid and astonished. His hands were in a defensive position, but regardless she leaned over and brought her lips to his in another attempt at a kiss. He responded quickly, his momentarily stunned hands gripped her shoulders, an action which brought their lips to an even further bruising intensity. His tongue deftly slipped into her mouth, and she groaned against him, instinctively grounding her pelvis against his. All thoughts escaped her and drained away as the blood rushed to her nether-regions. Her eyes fluttered in delight as his hands stroked the curve of her waist, and fingered the roundness of her breasts through the fabric. She could hardly breathe; he gave her little oxygen which heightened her pleasure three-fold.

His mouth let get of hers, giving her a chance to gasp for breath. "Severus," she murmured as his body was suddenly weighing down on her. He was atop of her now, his lips parted as he too struggled for breath. Celeste had become very aware of her tied hands which were like small bony stones pressing against the small of her back. "Please," she hissed. "Free me."

With a small hesitation he slipped his hand underneath her and pushed her to her side, he tore at the fabric of her nightgown which had her hands bound, and freeing her he pressed down onto her again. Her arms were bent in a manner at which she had utterly surrendered, his lips parted once again and he pressed them to the nape of her neck, making her arch into him. He groaned and savoured at her submission beneath him, when she was weak like this, he utterly loathed and lusted for her at the same time. His weight shifted right to a spot where her abdominal pains were most piercing, as if pricked with a long sharp pin she gasped and tried to pull out from underneath him. The hungry look in his eyes faded quickly when he saw her lips purse in pain, her eyes squinting while the tears were streaming down her face, but she didn't seem the mildest bit aware of it. He pulled himself off of her and watched her for a moment. She grasped her stomach and rolled onto her side. His hand reached out to her shoulder and he gripped it firmly, he turned her to face him for a moment. Words couldn't communicate what they were both feeling, so he moved slowly towards her and lay too on his side, protectively pulling her into his arms, his hand resting where hers was on her abdomen. They lay there like that for some time, and soon she drifted off to sleep again. Women were truly angels when they were sleeping, he thought.

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It was not quite dawn yet when Celeste stood looking down at the sleeping form of Severus. Her pupils were dark and small, the expression of the man beneath her mirrored in them. She pursed her lips and swallowed, hard. It was now or never that she would have to escape. If she didn't take her opportunity now, the Dark Lord would always hold it against her for not using hers wits to escape and return to him within a reasonable amount of days. She could smell her body odor for the first time in days, she never felt so unclean and sick, and even when she had her hands covered in the blood of her victims she felt a great deal cleaner.

Her eyes darted over their surrounds, and she didn't know which way to go. She had remembered he had said that Hogwarts was north of where the sun was setting, therefore, she would have to travel in the direction of the rising sun to get anywhere. She was sure she was miles away from the manor, and no one would think to look for her over in the depth of the forest. She raised her brows, this forest looked familiar, and in fact, the plant-life was not in plentiful. Perhaps she was in the Forbidden Forest? Her lip twitched, it couldn't have been, or otherwise some kind of creature would have found them by now. She had remembered they had fallen to the foot of a hill, so perhaps they were in another forest, as the Forbidden Forest was rather flat in its surface; this one was sloping in many different directions.

She decided. She was walking towards the light in the distance, the rising sun. She turned on her heel and prepared herself for the long walk. A wandless witch in a very bad state, she just couldn't care less anymore what would happen; all she knew was that she had to get away from Severus, a cruel traitor of her lord. She slowly moved at first across the clearing and she tried not to make too much of a sound, but it was hard when her feet continued stepping on twigs. She couldn't see what she was stepping on underneath her endless petticoats.

The dawn was misty, and with a sharp shift, Severus Snape's eyes flew one by one open. He groaned and hoisted himself up. He saw the billowing robes of Celeste's nightgown starting to disappear from sight straight. He spat bitterly on the ground and got himself up, not even brushing off the dirt of his robes he came like a vampire behind his prey, so quiet and with such fluid motion she would have had to have been heightened in all her senses to feel him coming for her.

She heard a twig break behind her, she froze, he realized his lethal mistake, but it was too late – she turned her head and gasped, at once she started running, almost tripping on her robes she ran as fast as her feet could carry her. The desperation to escape was mind-boggling and all she could see around her were the trees in a blurred form and the path ahead of her. She had to keep going in a straight line, she had to.

Severus on the other hand moved so rapidly it was hard for her to keep out of his sight. He knew she wouldn't be able to keep on running for long with the injuries she had suffered. The thought of her collapsing and passing out had sunk into him; he didn't want her to suffer as much as she was fighting to be rid of him. The penitent feeling that begun to well up inside of him however did not prevent him from wanting to stop her. He wanted to save her from herself, and he would have to go to any length to do so.

She felt a stitch in her lower abdomen, which combined with the pain due to her injuries, was weakening her greatly. Running at such a fast pace wasn't good for her, she never had to run this much, not this fast in her life. She hadn't seen the roots of the tree up ahead of her and with such haste she tripped over it and fell over landing on her stomach over the roots. She gasped and coughed a trickle of blood. Severus came close up behind her and at once wrenched her by her arms up to her feet. She wasn't aware of what was happening to her. The dizzy spell caused her feet beneath her to stagger and fall in front of him. Her eyes squeezed shut with defeat as she saw the hem of his robes. She started to cry bitterly, she began hitting his feet with her fists and crying out swear words and jinxes at him. "_My Lord! Please!"_ she pleaded to the sky.

Severus looked down at her sad little figure in a cluster of tears, dirt and rags and his nostrils sucked in the air around him. Celeste made one last sob and collapsed into a heap in front of him, pulling at his robes. Bending down he pulled her into his arms and carried her off, stepping over the roots of the tree that had tripped her. Dumbledore would know what to do.


End file.
